Now let us pause for a moment over a single sentence.

The crown prince’s studies did not end with reading.

He read aloud,
reflected on meaning,
and learned by writing the words himself.

Here, we have selected three passages from Confucian classics studied as part of a crown prince’s education.

The first is from The Great Learning:
“If you can truly renew yourself for one day, renew yourself day after day, and continue to renew yourself.”

The second is from The Analects of Confucius:
“If others do not recognize you and you do not become resentful, is that not also the mark of a person of noble character?”

And the third, also from The Analects of Confucius:
“Virtue is never alone; it is sure to have neighbors.”

At first, these three passages may seem to speak about different things.

But they all lead us toward a single question.

What kind of person am I becoming?

For a crown prince, learning was not simply a matter of acquiring knowledge.

It was a process of looking back at himself each day and gradually becoming a better person — a person of character and virtue.

Now choose one of the three passages that speaks to you today.

Pick up the brush pen and slowly trace the pale characters, one at a time.

There is no need to hurry, or to worry about writing them perfectly.

As you form each character, take a moment to think about its meaning before moving on to the next.

One Step at a Time.

Just as the crown prince once did,
today, begin with a single sentence.